CTIA: The Wireless Association said it was pleased the president
had acknowledged the rise of mobile device use in his memo
directing government agencies to make information more accessible to those
devices, but it used the opportunity to call on the government to free up more
bandwidth to handle all that information.
"CTIA and the wireless industry are pleased to see the president
recognizes that more Americans continue to rely on their mobile devices for
anytime and anywhere access, including the Internet," said CTIA president
Steve Largent in a statement. "At the same time, we hope the president and
his administration remain focused on getting more spectrum for the U.S.
wireless industry so our members may handle the significant data usage of
Americans now and in the future."
A centerpiece of that spectrum reclamation effort is FCC
reverse incentive auctions to compensate broadcasters for giving up bandwidth.
The president wants government agencies to use digital
technology to build a straight-line info highway to supplant the current
"labyrinth of information across different Government programs."
The White House chief information officer on Wednesday released
a game plan, a labyrinth of information across different government
programs," that gives departments and agencies a year to implement better
digital services, including mobile and Web-based technologies, and ones that
secure that information and protect its privacy."
By August, those departments and agencies must also have set
up a web site at a labyrinth of information across different government
programs to publicly report on their progress.
An FCC spokesperson was checking on whether the president's
memo applies to the commission, though it could be expected to honor the spirit
of the directive, as it did with the president's memorandum on regulatory
review.
